Weaving is soothing, rewarding, crafty, artsy, portable, pass-downable, giveable, keepable, wearable, durable, everything you want it to be-able.  Yet, in today’s fast paced world this activity has gone by the wayside.  Many homes, from the loftiest castle to the lowliest cottage would have had a loom (that’s that thingy you weave on) tucked away in a corner somewhere to create the cloth from which the families next clothes would be made.  You can still find such looms, from the towering tangle of a Viking stone weighted loom, to an eight heddle floor loom that could have been brought by covered wagon over the Rockies to a simple table loom or the iconic tapestry loom.  Or the lowly cardboard loom.

That might seem familiar to those of us who had an art teacher in elementary school who still wanted us to be exposed to this art, or who just wanted a fun and cheap project to fill up the day.  The cardboard loom is an easy first step for the beginner, whether you are five or fifty-five.  Lets make a bag!

The first step is to get an acceptable piece of cardboard.  One could buy a cardboard loom from an art supply outlet that caters to the public schools, but why purchase something you can get for free and it is a great way to re-use before you recycle.  Cut out a square or rectangle from a cardboard box.  To start, I would start small, say eight inches by eight inches, or whatever is easiest to chop off.  Use corrugated cardboard, not chip board (like a cereal box).  The chip board won’t stand up to the pull of the yarn.  A good pair of sharp scissors will usually do the trick, just try to make your sides fairly even and the corners at right angles.  If you trust yourself not to cut yourself, you could also use a box cutter or xacto knife.

Okay, Now that you have your piece you need to cut evenly spaced notches on opposite sides of the loom.   A good spacing tool is a simple ruler and make each notch about 1/4 inch apart, about 1/4 inch deep, marking with a pencil before you start to cut.  If you don’t have a ruler handy, the lines on a piece of notebook paper work just as well.  This doesn’t have to be perfect, just make sure that you have the same notches on one side as the opposite side.  Again, scissors work great for this or a box cutter or xacto knife.  Just be careful when cutting!

Now that you have your ‘loom’, you need some yarn.  It doesn’t matter what kind, and one skein should do it (that’s the name for the roll of yarn for those of you who are saying to yourselves, what’s a skein?)  After you have chosen your yarn it is time to put the Warp on the loom.  No, not warp drive, this isn’t science fiction.  That is the name for the lines of yarn that will wind around your loom and that you will weave into, which is called the weft.  Starting on one side, slip the end of the yarn into the first notch and wrap in around to keep the end secure, a couple of times should do it.  Pull the yarn taught, but not to tight, to the notch on the opposite side and slip it through, pulling it tight into the notch.  Take the yarn all the way around the cardboard to the back and up to the next notch on the opposite side, so that the cardboard is encircled.  Continue with this until all the notches have been filled.  Make sure you didn’t miss any!  If you did, just un-circle the yarn and do it again.  When you are finished, cut the yarn leaving a little bit of a ‘tail’ to wind a few times around the final notch.

Now you are ready for your weft.  The weft is done when you take a separate piece of yarn, same or different from the warp, and weave under and over the warp yarn.  Cut a piece, I usually cut one a little longer than the distance I can stretch from finger tip to finger tip, and wrap the end through one of the beginning notches, it doesn’t matter what side you start on.  Take the other end of the yarn and put in under the first warp line, then over the next one, then under then over, until you come to end of the warp. Pull the yarn all the way through so that it pulls gently on the end that you wrapped around the notch, but not off. Push the weft yarn down, so that it makes an even line at the bottom of your loom.  You will do this every time you finish a line, pushing the weft tightly together.  When you come to the edge of your loom, flip the loom over and proceed in the same manner on the opposite side.  When you have pulled the yarn through and flipped the loom over again, note that when you weave over and under you must weave opposite of what you did the previous time around.  For instance, if you went under the first line you would go over it this time.  If you went over it you would go under it, so that the whole thing will resemble a very narrow checker board.  Continue weaving and pushing your weft down to the bottom, firmly but you don’t have to worry about too firmly, until you come within an inch and a quarter, roughly, of the top of your loom.  Tie on more yarn changing colors, create a patter of stripes, or just one solid color, but don’t trim the ends after you make the knot or try to tuck them in.  The bag will be turned inside out when you are finished and you won’t see them at all, and you don’t want them to come untied!

Now you are done weaving!  Give yourself a pat on the back and get ready to finish your project.  Get out the scissors again and cut two of the warp strings all the way at the top of the loom.  You need to cut leaving as much room as possible to tie the two strings together in a knot.  Pull the strings tight and tie the knot.  Don’t trim them down or they will come undone!  After you have tied those two, flip the bag over and tie two opposite strings on the back at the top of the bag.  Remember to pull them tight, which will squish down some of your weaving, but if you pushed your weft down every time not a lot, and it will eliminate holes in your bag.  Cutting two string at a time, tie all the warp strings down.  If you have an extra one just tie it to the next adjacent string.  

When all the strings are tied, slide the cardboard out from the bag.   It’s okay if it gets bent and you can’t use it again.  Just throw it into the recycling!  Now turn your bag inside out and wowzie-wow-wow, you have a little piece of fantastic to give away or keep, or whatever.  Put a cloth or leather handle on if you want, or just leave it as is.

You can vary this project by using larger cardboard looms to make pillows.  Follow the instructions above, then after it is off the loom, stuff it with poly-fil or cotton/wool/recycled material stuffing and then sew the end closed with a yarn needle and the same yarn you wove with.